Home-standing Italy turned a halftime tie into a 3-0 victory, triumphing on Friday over Turkey in Group A of the 2020 European Championship.
Roberto Mancini’s Italy came into the match on a 27-match unbeaten run, and their fine structure showed almost immediately. The Azzurri came close early on a couple of headers from corner kicks. In the second half, the tension on the Turkish protection finally yielded results for Italy. Merih Demiral unintentionally chested the ball into his own net at the 53-minute mark following a Domenico Berardi cross from the right.
A goalmouth scramble prompted Italy’s second, with Immobile jumping on a free ball from the rebound in front of the Turkish goal to benefit Mancini’s side at the 66th minute. Lorenzo Insigne put the game away for Italy in the 79th moment, twisting home an excellent first-time shot after Turkey’s Cakir snared a goal kick right to the rival side.
https://youtu.be/he8PxsFEO0Y
Not surprisingly, Italy dominated the match. Italy had 24 shots with eight on target. Turkey had only three shots on the day with none on target. Italy held sway with a 64% match-possession and had more corner kicks (eight to two). Turkey had two cards (both yellow) to Italy’s none.
Both teams now move on to play games next Wednesday–Italy v. Switzerland and Turkey v. Wales.
